Mayor Dave Hodgson has said it will be a 'scandal' if the predicted 3.5% rail fare increase for next year is imposed on Bedford rail users, in light of the reduced and failing services they are experiencing.

The increase is set to be announced on Wednesday, 15th August, when official inflation figures are released, but Mayor Dave has said that any increase should apply to Bedford rail users due to the ongoing misery they are suffering in return for the high fares they pay.

The pay of FTSE 100 chief executives has soared by 11% in the past year, according to analysis by CIPD/High Pay Centre.

This is partly inflated by a £47.1m payout for Jeff Fairburn, the chief executive at Persimmon. The housebuilding group has benefited greatly from the Government's Help to Buy scheme, which helped trigger the enormous payout.

Responding, Liberal Democrat leader Vince Cable said "Despite so many efforts, including my own legislation, to ensure there is moderation in executive pay, some companies are still getting away with unjustifiable awards. What is particularly galling and outrageous is the Persimmon payout, because the firm is profiting as a result of a government subsidy, not the performance of the company."

Manufacturers must scrap the "smorgasbord" of plastics which are used in packaging for key foods so that councils can reduce waste sent to landfill and increase recycling, Lib Dems are warning.

Analysis from the Local Government Association suggests that only a third of plastic used by households is able to be recycled. It found 525,000 tonnes of plastic pots, tubs and trays are used by households a year but just 169,145 tonnes of this waste is able to be recycled.

As the new football season kicks off, former Liberal Democrat Leader Tim Farron has called for the Government to throw its weight behind the campaigns to introduce safe standing at football and to cap tickets at £20.

The Liberal Democrat MP has warned Conservative Ministers to "take football reforms by the scruff of the neck".

His party - the first party to do so - wants the Government to scrap existing legislation that prevents clubs from introducing safe standing. This would give fans the choice to stand as they get behind their team.

He has also backed the Football Supporters' Federation's campaign, 'Twenty's Plenty', which wants clubs to cap away tickets in the Premier League at £20.

In a speech during a rally on Saturday - organised by the People's Vote campaign for a fresh referendum - Sir Vince is expected to dismiss concerns from Brexiteer "fanatics" that there is no time to get legislation through parliament for a second public vote.

DB Cargo UK is the UK's biggest railfreight provider and has just gone through a programme of restructuring and modernisation in response to changing patterns of trade. They are using new systems and improved IT to streamline processes and deliver a more reliant and resilient transport service. A key element in all this is a £6 million expansion of its steel coil warehousing facility in Wolverhampton at Horseley Fields, including the addition of a new internal rail line. This will then bring the storage, handling and re-distribution capacity up to 40,000 tonnes of steel in the form of 3,325 coils.

One of the biggest beneficiaries will be ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steel company, which brings steel into the UK through the ports of Immingham, Hull, Goole and Boston. Moving steel by rail to a central location for the majority of its journey, will significantly reduce the carbon footprint for the products that will be made from it.

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